Partnership for UK fusion materials development
09 February 2023
Materials with better resilience to the extreme conditions in fusion energy power plants are to be developed in a new partnership between the UK Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA) and the University of Birmingham. UKAEA will also sponsor a Chair in Fusion Materials at the University.
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From left to right: Professor Alessandro Mottura, University of Birmingham; Dr Amanda Quadling, UKAEA; and Dr Alexander Knowles, University of Birmingham (Image: UKAEA)
UKAEA is developing a fusion power plant design with plans to build a prototype known as STEP (Spherical Tokamak for Energy Production) at West Burton in Nottinghamshire, which is due to begin operating by 2040. The project is to be delivered by the newly-created UK Industrial Fusion Solutions Ltd.
"In order to make fusion commercially viable, new materials will need to be designed, developed and modelled," UKAEA said. "These materials will need to withstand the highly energetic neutrons released by the fusion reactions."
UKAEA and the University of Birmingham have now announced a partnership under which they will focus initially on carrying out irradiation studies on materials, developing new metal alloys that are more radiation tolerant, and additive manufacturing of materials that can withstand ultra-high temperatures.
The partnership will also work to develop a pipeline of skilled fusion engineers for this growing sector. A Master of Research (MRes) degree in Materials for Fusion Energy has been established. It is expected this will attract collaborations from a wider range of industrial partners who will be able to sponsor students and work in partnership with them on research projects.
The partnership with UKAEA follows the University of Birmingham's recent commissioning of its High Flux Accelerator-Driven Neutron facility. Added to the existing MC40 Cyclotron facility, this installation makes University of Birmingham an ideal place at which to study damage sustained by materials in fusion machines.
"The University of Birmingham's School of Metallurgy and Materials has a strong track record in the development of novel materials for extreme environments particularly through the design of novel compositions and microstructures," said Amanda Quadling, director of materials research at UKAEA. "We're pleased to have this opportunity to use the University's neutron source and to work with their excellent team of scientists."
"The unique facilities and expertise at the University of Birmingham will enable us to make a significant contribution to the development of fusion into a reliable and sustainable energy source," said Alessandro Mottura, head of materials at the University of Birmingham. "This agreement will build on years of fruitful collaboration between the University of Birmingham and UKAEA, and will contribute to strengthening the United Kingdom's leadership in this sector."